The stupid Arsenal over-complication that has to stop

There was a lot to be disheartened about in the defeat to Southampton. Whether it be Fraser Forster taking his recent England call-up too seriously or the lack of urgency from Arsenal, there was little be reassured about.

As if losing three consecutive Premier League matches – among the more winnable left on the fixture list – wasn’t bad enough, next up for this team is a trip across the capital to face Chelsea.

Fresh from booking their place in the FA Cup final and outclassing Real Madrid for long spells at the Bernabeu, they are low down on the list of teams Mikel Arteta and co would have preferred to face next.

Or maybe it’s actually what this side needs? Coming up short against teams they were ‘supposed’ to beat, the underdog tag could favour them. Or, conversely, the additional pressure will tell even more. Who knows?

Arsenal stupidly over-complicated their free-kick routines with Cedric taking set-pieces against Southampton, which can’t happen again vs Chelsea

One thing that is for certain is that in order to leave with a positive result and keep their top four hopes alive, Arsenal will have to make the most of their chances when they come. Whether that be mistakes from the Chelsea defence, or indeed set-pieces.

In the second half of the defeat to Brighton there was a strange sight. Sambi Lokonga had made a bursting run through the middle and been felled just outside the penalty area, handing Arsenal a dangerous free-kick. Cedric took it. Yes, Cedric. And he hit his own player.

Martin Odegaard would eventually take one later on in the game, forcing Robert Sanchez into a flying save to tip the effort onto the crossbar, which should have provided an indicator for who is best to have on set-pieces.

Fast forward to St Mary’s and, lo and behold, it’s back to Cedric.

It’s obvious that he’s doing something right in training. He must be hitting the top bins with whip and force on a regular basis. He must be, because he was so dreadful on them against Southampton that there was no possible alternative.

One passage of play in the first half saw him hit two free-kicks straight out of play within the space of two minutes. It was baffling viewing. It’s one thing doing it in training – Thomas Partey and his long range strikes spring to mind – and another replicating that on matchday.

In a game where Arsenal aren’t expected to see much of the ball or create too many openings, dead balls could be crucial. Given the Gunners’ strong record this season, why they opted to change that against the Saints is something only Nicolas Jover and the group will know.

It was over-complication for the sake of over-complication. Stupidity, some might say, much like the short corners in the dying seconds of the Brighton defeat to people in offside positions. With no efficiency whatsoever to the ploy, let it be one that is banished to the history books. Why try to fix something that is clearly not broken?

Not again. Not at Stamford Bridge.